Hmm, what to say about this game? Well, it certainly has its ups and certainly has its very, very low downs...
Let this review begin on the downs and end on a positive note. So, lets start on something really, really negative. The multiplayer mode. The multiplayer mode in this game is very, very dull, dry and glitchy. It seems like the game producers, LucasArts put in a very minimal effort to create this, or it was a last-minute addition to the game. Multiplayer, in this game, enables the player and one friend to take the role of certain Jedi, such as Qui-Gon Jinn, Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi, and face off against each other. This sounds pretty good hey? But, hold on a second – there's a few catches and flaws. Glitches in multiplayer mode include the Force meter not recharging, or where a Force Push Object move ridiculously homes in on your rival i.e. your rival may be very far from you, but, Force Push a pot or something and it homes on to him.
Another flaw in the multiplayer system is this: the damage dealt to the opposition varies on the character you are playing i.e. Qui-Gon and Ki-Adi-Mundi both make the same attack/movement, but Ki-Adi-Mundi's attack is stronger. This is alright, but there at least should be a ratings system in place i.e. character "x" is rated 7, character "y" is rated 10, in order to stop confusion. So, overall, the multiplayer in this game is a joke – it could have been better replaced by co-operative campaign or a "Death Match/Slayer" similar to that of Halo.
The graphics in this game are pretty good for the standards of 2001 in which this game was made. There are no issues at all with the graphics, they are good, things are seeable and nothing is wrong. No issues there. However, I must make a criticism in regards to the Camera Angles. At times, the only way to see decent view of things is to pull the character backwards a little – which can become very inconvenient. Also, sometimes users may find it hard to control their character whilst fighting against more than three to five units of enemy, making the user more prone to fire, and one may find that against a pack of more than five battle droids, the character's health drains very easily.
The single-player mode is the up-side of this game. Set before and during the events of Star Wars 1 – Phantom Menace, you take on the role of Jedi Obi Wan Kenobi, and face rivals such as gangster thugs, the Jin'Ha, the Trade Federation Droids, Tusken Raiders, Darth Maul and other Jedi Knights. With the plot of Star Wars 1, and the multitude of enemies to seek and kill will get the player sucked in to the game, regardless of avid Star Wars fan or not. However, unfortunately, the game AI is unbelievably stupid – you could be staring a Droid into the face, but they still do not realise that you are in front of them. And there are always times when enemy AI kill one another.
However, a concern I have for new players to this game is that campaign mode is completely unpredictable; some levels do not have a clear path and sometimes it may take a while (several guesses, maybe some research) to find out what has being going on and how to proceed further in the game. Many players have hated and rage quit on this game simply because campaign is too hard for them.
To conclude, this game is only excellent for those who like a challenge or prefer to play video games by themselves. The multiplayer mode is simply a farce. This game can be bought cheap second-hand (they don't make this game anymore, due to it being 10 years out of date and due to poor reviews) in game stores or online. So buy it now if you're a lonely gamer.